Potato digger chain



oct 31, 1939. Ti J. LGCKWOOD 177,730

POTATQ DIGGER CHAIN Filed Feb. 23, 1959 1 N VE NTOR.

7. J. L OC/(Woo.

BY W ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE POTATO DIGGER CHAIN Thorval J. Lockwood, Kimball, Nebr.

Application February 23, 1939, Serial No. 257,771

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a conveyor or elevator chain of the bar type and while more particularly designed for use on potato diggers and graders, it is of course not limited to this particular use.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a chain of this character which consists p of but two diierent parts so that it can be rapidly and economically manufactured and to provide a chain which will be exceedingly rugged and long wearing and in which worn parts can be quickly, easily and economically replaced.

Other objects are to provide a construction in which the bars will not be subjected t0 sprocket wear; in which the bar spacing will be accurately uniform throughoutrthe length of the chain; in which lateral movement of the bars will be prevented; and in which the contact of the bars with the material being conveyed will be cushioned to prevent injury or abrasion of the material.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of the invention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efficiency. kThese will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of` the invention reference is had to the accompanying drawing which forms a part hereof. Like numerals refer to like parts in all views or" the drawing and throughout the description.

In the drawing:

Fig.l l is a face view of the improved chain, partially in section, illustrating its relation to a pair of typical supporting sprockets.

Fig. 2 is a detail section taken on the line 2-2, Fig. 1.

The improved chain consists of but two different parts, a bar lli having hook-shaped extremities and a flattened tubular sleeve II. The bar I is `similarly formed at-both of its extremities and at each extremity is bent first at a right angle to form an end link portion I2 which in turn is lbent at right angles parallel to, and in the plane of, the bar IE) to form a sleeve-shaft portion I3. The extremities of the portions I3 are turned inwardly toward the bar Iii, as shown at I4, to maintain the sleeves I I in place thereon.

The chain is assembled by attaching each bar Il] to the sleeve shaft portions I3 of the adjacent bar by means of the tubular sleeves Il. The sleeves II are preferably formed of a sheet of metal rolled at its extremities about the adjacent bar portions and brought together therebelow in a contacting joint I5, as shown in Fig. 2.

The bars are free to rotate in the sleeves but cannot move longitudinally therein due to the fact that the sleeves are held in fixed position between the link portions I2 and the turned extremities I4. The sleevesll serve a double pur- 6 pose-rst, they act to secure the series of bars together and second they act as bearing bushings to prevent wear upon the bars from the teeth of the chain sprockets over which the chain passes.

In Fig. l, a pair of typical chain sprockets is illustrated at I6. It will be noted that the teeth of the sprockets I6 enter the chain between the sleeves I I so that they do not contact or Wear any portion of the chain. If the sleeves wear in acl tual use, they can be easily removed and replaced with `new sleeves without requiring removal of the bars.

It is also desired` to call attention to the fact that the area of contact between the bars and the sleeves is relatively large due to the length of the sleeves and their surrounding engagement with the bars. Therefore, wear at this point is reduced to a minimum and should wear occur,

replacement of the bars and sleeves may be easily accomplished.

It is preferred to place a length of rubber tubing II upon each of the bars to prevent wearing away the bars in gritty or abrasive material. The chain can of course be made in any width desired by simply using longer bars.

While a specific form of the improvement has been described and illustrated herein, it is desired to be understood that the same may be varied, within the scope of the appended claims, Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired secured by Letters Patent 1. A bar chain construction comprising two parallel series 0f spaced apart, flattened tubular sleeve members; and a series of parallel bars7 extending between said two series, each extremity of each bar extending through one of said sleeves, thence returning back through an adjacent sleeve with an adjacent bar.

movement of said bars and the shaft-sleeve portions thereof in said sleeves.

3. A bar chain comprising: a plurality of bent bars and a plurality of tubular sleeves, each bar being bent at each extremity, rst at right angles to form end link portions, then at right angles to the end link portions and back along the bar to form shaft-sleeve portions, each of said sleeves connecting one of said shaft-sleeve portions to an adjacent bar; and angular turned extremities on the ends of the shaft-sleeve portions for preventing axial movement of said bars and the 5 shaft-sleeve portions thereof in said sleeves.

THORVAL J. LOCKWOOD. 

